Johnny Herbert

Interesting facts

In 1988 he hit the wall head-on at a Formula 3000 race at Brands Hatch, bounced back across the track and struck the opposite barrier too - his foot and ankle injuries were so severe that amputation was considered. Despite the injuries, he made his F1 debut for Benetton at the 1989 Brazilian Grand Prix and finished fourth, just 10.5 seconds behind the winning Ferrari - but the injury made operating the brake pedal difficult, and he was dropped mid-season. He returned to Benetton in 1995 as Michael Schumacher's teammate, taking his first F1 win at the British Grand Prix after a Hill-Schumacher collision, and won again at Monza in similar circumstances. His biggest success outside F1 was winning the 1991 24 Hours of Le Mans in the rotary-engined Mazda 787B. After retiring, he worked as a Sky Sports F1 commentator from 2012 to 2022. Johnny Herbert raced in Formula 1 from 1989 to 2000, across 12 seasons as a British driver. He scored a total of 98 championship points over his career.